Ohio Gov. John Kasich said Thursday he’s the most experienced potential presidential candidate.
“Of all the people thinking about [running for president], I’m the most experienced,” Kasich said during an interview with ABC’s Jon Karl at the Atlantic’s Summit on the Economy. He listed off his long career in the Ohio Senate, an 18-year career in the U.S. House of Representatives — where he chaired the House Budget Committee the last time the federal budget was balanced — spending time in the private sector and serving as Governor of Ohio since 2011. “It’s experience and a record. It’s not what I want to do, it’s what I’ve done.”
Kasich said he didn’t know yet if he would run for president, and added that he wouldn’t run if he didn’t think he could win. He declined to give a timeline for his decision.
Kasich also noted a swift rise in his approval ratings, from 28 percent in his first year to 61 percent. He also cited majority re-election support from typically non-conservative demographics: women and union households.
Kasich also said changing the tax system to one that taxes consumption rather than income is the best way to drive economic growth at the state level. He said he took office facing an $8 billion budget deficit, but has still managed to cut taxes by $3 billion. Those tax cuts came not just from the top rate, but from killing the death tax, providing small business tax relief and other taxes as well.
“When I do tax cuts, we try to cut from the top and cut from the bottom,” Kasich said.
At the federal level, Kasich said there needs to be a balanced budget amendment.
